Commentary, sarcasm and snide remarks from a Florida resident of over thirty years. Being a glutton for punishment is a requirement for residency here.
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Monday, April 09, 2007

Blame it on Global warming

Major League Baseball may be forced to tinker with its schedule after a weekend series in Cleveland was wiped out by a snowstorm and a cold snap forced the postponement of six games during the first week of the season.

Worried that more unseasonable weather could hit Cleveland again this week, baseball may send the Indians to warm up in Anaheim instead of making the Angels head east.

And temperatures aren't the only thing that's way down: Home runs plunged during the season's frigid first week to their lowest level since 1993, with average dropping from 2.4 in last season's opening week to 1.8 this year. It hadn't been that low since a 1.6 average 14 years ago, according to the Elias Sports Bureau.

*****

Baseball tried to work around the cold a decade ago, without great success. After enduring a snowout at Boston's Fenway Park, a snowy afternoon at Yankee Stadium and cold in Detroit and Chicago in 1996, baseball remade the schedule for 1997, using all five covered fields then in the majors and every West Coast site.

No brainer, right?

After teams in the East and Midwest got home, eight games were wiped out by weather on the season's second Saturday, raising that year's total to 17.

MLB has been having to cope with inclement April weather since the sport began. The only difference I see, is that the season has begun earlier than in years past. Baseball used to start play as late as April 15-20 but now its the first week of April. This isn't totally the fault of the conversion from a 154 to 162 game schedule(In 1964, the season opener was April 13th, where as in 2007 it was April 1st.) What has happened is the elimination of the doubleheader from baseball. This has caused the stretching of the baseball season.

Moving the games to California is unfair to Indian fans. MLB has to just get used to the fact no one can control the weather.